FEATURED ARTICLES ABOUT QATAR - PAGE 2

CAIRO (Reuters) - Qatar said on Thursday it would invest $18 billion dollars in tourism and industry projects along Egypt's Mediterranean coast over the next five years, the latest pledge of support to an economy hammered by a year and a half of political turmoil. The projects include $8 billion for gas, power and iron and steel plants at the northern entrance to the Suez Canal and $10 billion for a giant tourist resort on the Mediterranean coast. Egypt's stock exchange closed at a 14-month high on Thursday on optimism that a new government with a clear popular mandate will secure investments and donor aid to stave off a balance of payments and budget crisis.

KATHMANDU (Reuters) - Nepal recalled its ambassador in Qatar on Thursday after she called the Gulf state an "open jail" for Nepalis who suffer labor abuses, and amid outrage about labor conditions and deaths as the emirate prepares to host the 2022 World Cup. Maya Kumari Sharma's remarks were made about six months ago in an interview but only attracted attention this week after they were reprinted in a report by Britain's Guardian newspaper that...

DOHA, June 20 (Reuters) - Preliminary Afghan peace talks in Qatar between U.S. and Taliban officials are unlikely to take place on Thursday as originally expected, a source familiar with the matter told Reuters. Asked if the meeting would go ahead on Thursday, the source replied: "There is nothing scheduled that I am aware of. " Asked if that meant they would not happen today, the source added: "Yes that's correct. " (Reporting by Amena Bakr, Writing by William Maclean; Editing by Andrew Heavens)

DUBAI, June 18 (Reuters) - The Afghan Taliban plans to open an office in Qatar on Tuesday to help restart talks on ending the 12-year-old war, an Afghan diplomatic source in the Gulf Arab state told Reuters. "There is a plan for the office to be open today," said the source. "This will help start the peace talks again. " (Reporting by Amena Bakr, Editing by William Maclean and Janet Lawrence)

BEIRUT, Aug 17 (Reuters) - Former Syrian prime minister Riyad Hijab, who defected earlier this month, is in Qatar for talks about how to unify opposition efforts to topple President Bashar al-Assad, his spokesman said on Friday. Hijab, who announced his defection on Aug. 6 becoming the most senior serving official to quit Assad's administration, arrived on Thursday for a three-day visit, spokesman Mohamed Atari said. Hijab would discuss "unifying the efforts of the opposition to accelerate the pace of the downfall of the regime," Atari said.

DUBAI, Oct 15 (Reuters) - Qatar, the second-largest investor in miner Xstrata, is looking favourably at the company's proposed merger with commodities trader Glencore, Prime Minister Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim al-Thani said on Monday. Asked at a news conference if Qatar would support a merger, Sheikh Hamad said: "It is under a lot of consideration and focus. We are looking in favour of a merger between the two companies. " The tiny, gas-rich Gulf state has become an unexpected kingmaker in Glencore's bid for Xstrata, the world's fourth largest diversified miner.

(Reuters) - Awarding the 2022 soccer World Cup to Qatar was a 'mistake' and the tournament will probably have to be held in the winter because of the heat, FIFA president Sepp Blatter has said. "Of course, it was a mistake. You know, one comes across a lot of mistakes in life," he told Swiss television station RTS in an interview. "The Qatar technical report indicated clearly that it is too hot in summer, but the executive committee with quite a big majority decided all the same that the tournament would be in Qatar," he added.

(Reuters) - Host nation Qatar is happy to accommodate a change in the dates for the 2022 World Cup, while insisting it can still stage the tournament in summer. Qatar said it was researching and developing cooling technologies which could be used "in our stadiums, training pitches, fan zones and public areas for the 2022 FIFA World Cup. " However, the Qatar 2022 Supreme Committee said on Wednesday that it would not object to a move away from the originally scheduled summer tournament if asked.

(Reuters) - Qatar would be willing to host the 2022 World Cup in the European winter despite winning the bid with a controversial summer proposal, local organisers said on Friday. "Concerning the timing of the 2022 FIFA World Cup, we have always reiterated that we bid on the parameters that we would host in the summer of 2022," the Qatar 2022 supreme committee said in a statement. "Various figures from the world of football have raised preferences for hosting in the winter. We are ready to host the World Cup in summer or winter.